


You're Not Marrying Me, Sunshine!

by Ray_Writes



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Donna is Donna, Episode Fix-It: s04e13 Journey's End, F/M, Fix-It, Happy Ending, Ten is a Lovesick Puppy, The Children of Time are Way Too Invested
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-22
Updated: 2016-10-22
Packaged: 2018-08-24 01:44:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,265
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8351446
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ray_Writes/pseuds/Ray_Writes
Summary: But if, if, he could somehow share the load, lessen the burden, it might just be enough.Humans from this era didn’t have enough psychic energy to sustain a constant telepathic connection, not on their own, but he could create a bond, an open pathway to allow his memories and energy to filter back and forth between them. As Donna was neither his kin nor even his kind the only way to initiate that kind of close connection would be—
Oh. Oh dear.
---The Doctor decides to be a better best friend in the wake of Donna's exposure to the metacrisis. It's not at all motivated by his entirely selfish love for said best friend. Not at all.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Because it's been eight years, and I'm still not over it.

As the Children of Time celebrated while towing the Earth back to its rightful place in the solar system, the Doctor—the original Doctor, that was—stood back and surveyed them all, a confusing mix of emotions stirring somewhere in the vicinity of his gut. He’d shown each of them their specific task and then slipped into the background, the humans too caught up in their euphoria and Donna and his Duplicate far too busy taking the lead on the trip to pay him much mind. It thankfully left him time to think and try to sort through said confusing mix of emotions.

Pride was chief among them, he was happy to note. They’d had their stumbles and falters but overall his friends had all risen to this very important occasion and delivered to the best of their abilities without even being asked.

Even when it wasn’t necessary, really. Truth be told he wasn’t actually sure just why—fantastic as it was to see them—the crew from Pete’s World had gone to the trouble of making such a long, not to mention dangerous, journey between worlds to do…what exactly?

Rose had been trying to warn him about the stars going out, apparently, except she’d already been using the Dimension Canon before that to get back to him. The TARDIS and her cloister bell would’ve been able to raise the alarm well enough on its own, really. And he had a sinking feeling Rose didn’t realize that a herald of danger was all she could be in this adventure; the walls between the worlds would be closing after Davros’ failure and the Doctor refused to be the reason the Tylers might be permanently separated again. He’d lost a daughter of his own all too recently and he wouldn’t wish that pain on anyone, least of all Jackie.

She and Mickey had just been coming after Rose, not really anything to do with the Daleks or the Reality Bomb there. Although from what he was hearing they’d somehow saved Sarah Jane in the process. Well, that was more than alright by him then. Now the best thing to do would be to get them back across the worlds before they were left stranded here, and then dropping Sarah and the rest back home. Simple enough.

That just left…his eyes lingered on the seemingly mirror image of himself. It was discomfiting, that someone wearing his face with his mind and memories had been so ready and able to commit genocide, even against the Daleks. He thought he’d learned, or was it his clone who now needed to be taught the lesson? He couldn’t very well do it here in the TARDIS under the Doctor’s tutelage. For one thing, it’d get right confusing. For another, he hated being left alone with his own company, so doubling that was bound to be even worse. And how could he help this new Doctor when he hadn’t even been able to help himself? They’d both be better off rid of each other. And he thought he knew how he could make that happen, if he played his cards right.

Which brought him, at last, to Donna. Oh, Donna. She’d truly gone and done it, become the single most important woman in the universe and saved them and all creation—but doomed herself in the process. He couldn’t tell from watching her whether she’d realized it yet, though the knowledge had to be sitting there. More likely, she was just ignoring it, putting if off…quite right, too.

The Doctor could barely keep the despair from his own face at the thought of that looming goodbye. She simply meant too much to him, more than he could ever let on, and the idea of her leaving petrified him at times. But she would have to, if he wanted to save her which he did. His selfish desire to keep her alive in some way only slightly outweighed his revulsion at the knowledge of what he’d have to do to her. Donna had a brilliant, beautiful mind, as he well knew; he’d been there once before, opening up a telepathic connection to let her hear the Oodsong.

Hold on! There was an idea in there somewhere, he just knew it! Think, just think…

He couldn’t just take all the energy back from her because then he’d die and that would defeat the purpose of him avoiding it in the first place. He couldn’t let her keep all of it because then she would die, or he would have to repress her memories and that was a fate perhaps worse than death.

But if, _if_ , he could somehow  _share_ the load, lessen the burden, it might just be enough.

Humans from this era didn’t have enough psychic energy to sustain a constant telepathic connection, not on their own, but he could create a bond, an open pathway to allow his memories and energy to filter back and forth between them. As Donna was neither his kin nor even his kind the only way to initiate that kind of close connection would be—

Oh. Oh dear.

The Doctor cast about desperately for some alternative because _this_ , it would save her yes, but Donna would _never_ agree to it. In fact he was fairly certain she’d still choose the quick death. But it really was the only way, she had to see that, surely having all his knowledge at her disposal would allow her to look at the bigger picture of _not dying_ which was absolutely vital to the beauty of the universe and her family’s happiness not to mention _his_ —and Martha was sneaking glances at him out of the corner of her eye so his fretting had to be getting a little obvious.

Right. Okay. He could do this. Well, he had to do it. _Well_ , wanted to do it really. And that was the important thing, that’s what he had to keep in mind, what he had to convince Donna of; that it was the best and only option he was willing to consider.

Taking in a deep breath through his nose, the Doctor picked his way around the console, past several of the others, and ended up at Donna’s elbow, which he touched lightly.

She turned to face him with a dazzling smile. “Just putting the finishing touches on the alignment of the Earth. Can’t have it go off on some new orbit, can we now?”

“No,” he agreed quietly.

“There’ll probably still be a bit of irregularity with the weather, just your basic atmospheric excitation,” she continued to babble. “Might even snow!”

His lips twitched up even as his insides continued to roil about uncomfortably. Were those nerves? Nerves were rubbish, he didn’t like them much at all.

“I think the others can sort the rest of it out, Donna,” he forced himself into saying. “There’s something I need to talk to you about.” She arched an eyebrow at him but allowed him to take her hand and pull her away from the controls. They slipped out into a corridor, not without attracting a few curious looks unfortunately.

This was absolutely the last conversation he wanted to be having while the others were still onboard, but if he waited till after they’d all been dropped off he’d have minutes, maybe, to explain his plan to Donna. And he was going to need all the time he had to wear her down.

“Donna, you absorbed the regeneration energy from my hand. You took my memories into your head.”

“Yep.” She popped the ‘p’. Just like he always did. Just another reason why he needed to fix this; he couldn’t stand watching his mannerisms and expressions taking over her own.

“And how does that feel?” He asked solemnly.

“Brilliant! Fantastic! _Molto bene_!” She chirped back at him. “Great big universe packed into my brain—”

“And it shouldn’t be,” he cut her off before she could go on. “Donna, you have all that knowledge right at your fingertips. You have to know what’s happening.”

She took a step back. Like he’d slapped her. “I’m—I’m fine, right now. Really. I don’t want to talk about it yet—”

“There’s no avoiding it. There’s never been a human Time Lord metacrisis before now. And you know why.”

“Because there can’t be,” she breathed out. Then her eyes snapped back up to lock on his. “I want to stay.”

“I know,” he said.

“Then why—” She stopped and stared hard at him. “Why are you bringing it up now? Everyone’s still here.”

“Because I also know a way we might be able to let you stay and not burn up,” he got out in a rush. “And believe me, Donna, I would do anything to make sure that happened, you hear? _Anything_.”

“Spaceman.” And he thought he could see some of the old Donna personality reemerge at last, concern evident in her expression as she moved closer again. “You’re not going to—”

“No,” he assured with a quick shake of the head. “No, it’s really not- it’s not bad. Just probably, well, definitely not something you had in mind. See, my people were telepathic,” he began, and she seemed to struggle to resist the urge to roll her eyes. Right, she already knew that. “Between telepathic species, depending on the relationship, bonds can be formed between their minds. And if such a bond were formed with you it would allow for a number of things, really, but most importantly it would allow you to be relieved of a majority of the excess energy and memories, keeping your mind from burning up.”

“I’m not telepathic, though,” she pointed out.

“No, but you could still enter into a bond initiated by someone who is. Someone like me,” he added helpfully.

“But that could only happen if…” Her eyes went wide as she clearly had located the information in her own mind. “Oh, you have _got_ to be kidding me.”

“I’m really not,” he said, features and tone set with deadly seriousness. He couldn’t afford to waffle this or get embarrassed. “The bond needs to be strong in order to awaken your human embryonic telepathic abilities.” The Doctor paused for a single breath more, teetering on the edge, before deciding to quit talking round and round it. “We would have to get married.”

Donna gaped at him, like she couldn’t believe he’d had the audacity. He was having a hard time believing it himself, in all fairness. And now she was fixing him with that look that said he had better swallow those words back up if he knew what was good for him.

Well he did know what was good for him and that was Donna Noble, thank you very much, and he wasn’t about to go and lose her just because the words _we_ and _married_ in the same sentence made her ill.

He took another step closer. “Donna, please, listen to me—”

“Doctor?” Rose’s voiced echoed down the corridor and they both looked back sharply. “What are you doing back here? Earth’s back in place and we’re just spinning away in the Vortex.” She was grinning at him, clearly thinking he was being silly for some reason. “Don’t we have places to be, people to drop home?”

Donna had tensed and drawn away from him at the appearance of his former companion, which was exactly what he didn’t need. “Just need to discuss something with Donna,” he stated, wanting to get back to convincing his best friend of the necessity of this as soon as possible. “It’s important, do you mind?”

“Er, no that’s alright.”

“Thanks. You can tell the rest it’ll be another minute.”

Rose hesitated, looking between the two of them and seeming curious to know more. The Doctor pointedly flicked his gaze towards the entrance to the control room and with a growing frown she complied.

He spun back around on his heels to face Donna, maneuvering back into her space and her sightline. “We really don’t have a lot of time to discuss the particulars. As soon as we’ve taken everybody back, we’ll need to get everything ready. It’s not a complicated ceremony—”

“But we- we’re just mates, we said it, we’re just mates, not a couple,” she stammered at last.

He scrubbed a hand over his face. “I know, I know what we said.” Or rather, what she’d been saying, last few months. He’d told himself it was just easier to allow Donna to dispel the assumptions of seemingly everyone they met on their travels, and ignored the fact that at some point it had become easier to stop joining her protestations simply because he didn’t want to. Now was possibly not the best time to mention that, though.

“You said telepathic species,” stated Donna slowly. “That could be like any telepathic species, right? What about that Ood Sigma chap? He was nice—”

The Doctor’s eyes widened in incredulity and perhaps a touch of indignation. “You’d rather marry an _Ood_ than _me_?”

“Well I’m just saying, let’s not be hasty!”

“An Ood!”

“Alright, some other telepathic alien then.” Her eyes lit up. “Wait a tick, isn’t Jack telepathic?”

“Not enough,” he growled.

“Did someone say not enough Jack?” The immortal man called out and he wanted to groan. “Rose said you guys were having a little pow-wow back here. Is something still wrong?”

“No,” spoke the Doctor the same time Donna gave an emphatic “ _Yes_.”

“Donna!”

“What? This is wrong! I save all of creation and the thanks I get is being forced into marriage?”

“ _Woah_ , what?” Jack asked on something of a laugh.

“And what sparkplug is loose in your big old Time Lord brain to think you doing this would be a good idea?” She continued on like the other man hadn’t even spoken.

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe the sparkplug that says you will _die_ if I don’t!”

“Is everything okay? Heard shouting.” Martha’s voice. “Jack, what’s going on?”

“I have no idea, but apparently it involves the Doctor and Donna needing to tie the knot or she’ll die.”

“ _What_?”

“Someone’s dying?” Mickey.

“Alright, I think that’s enough commentary. Private discussion, did I mention? So would you all just—”

Donna cut him off, suddenly striding past him back towards the console room. “Actually, Time Boy, pretty sure this is just what you need to see you’ve gone completely mental!”

“Donna!” He called after in dismay, running to catch up.

“Hang on, Mister,” Martha tried to intercept him. “Why is Donna dying?”

“Not now, Martha, I’ve got to—”

“Alright, everyone, listen up!” Donna barked. Most of the others’ eyes had already been on her once she stormed back into the room. She had a commanding presence, Donna Noble. They had all fallen silent now waiting on her next words. “I became a human Time Lord metacrisis by touching him over there—” his Duplicate dutifully waved with a grin and the Doctor rolled his eyes “—back when he was a hand in a jar, and I got the Doctor’s mind in my head.”

“Yeah, you said,” Jackie pointed out, nonplussed.

“Right, well, what I didn’t say is that humans aren’t supposed to do that because our brains aren’t built the same way and I can’t hold all those memories and knowledge on my own, so basically I’m gonna die.”

There were gasps that went up around the whole room. “But there must be some way to fix it!” Sarah Jane exclaimed.

“There is,” he interjected.

“And it’s rubbish,” Donna added with a glare thrown his way. “The Doctor can’t take it all back or he’ll actually regenerate this time which is _so_ not happening. I’m not killing you,” she told him firmly. “So I’m not marrying you either.”

Rose completely lost the grave expression she’d been wearing, eyes flying wide open and neck nearly snapping in order to turn to him with a cry of “ _What_?”

Sarah was also eyeing him with some shock, but like the others seemed to mostly be baffled at the seeming non-sequitur.

“What’s marriage got to do with saving your life?” Jackie wanted to know.

“Marriages on Gallifrey—my planet,” he clarified for her, Rose, and Mickey, “were different than on Earth. My people were telepathic and part of the ceremony involved a special bond being formed between the spouses. By marrying Donna, I could use the bond to help relieve her of enough of my memories and knowledge that her mind would no longer be burning up. She would be safe and alive and able to continue traveling on the TARDIS.”

He should’ve stressed that last bit from the start; he could see how her stubborn expression turned conflicted for just a single second. The others all for the most part seemed to be trying to reconcile all this new information and what it entailed.

“Well, okay then!” Jack seemed to be accepting this plan most easily. Figured. “What’s the Gallifreyan equivalent of mazel tov?”

“Not now, Jack,” he dismissed without even looking the other man’s way. Instead he moved up to the controls. “There’s not much time.” He piloted the ship, alone this time since this trip would be far too complicated for most of the others and Donna was apparently furious with him now.

His Duplicate was also sulking in the corner. Oh brilliant, he’d guessed what was going to happen to him. Just what the Doctor needed.

“Doctor.” Rose sidled up to him and he had to lean far over the console to reach a button she was in the path of. “You’re not serious about this, are you? Marrying Donna?”

“I’m not sure how much more serious I can be about it, despite everyone’s best efforts,” he grumbled.

“But you can’t,” she continued, and his nose wrinkled.

“Oh dear,” he heard Sarah murmur. She remembered well his aversion to being told just what he could and couldn’t do.

He flipped one more lever and then turned fully to look at Rose. “And just why not?”

“Because,” she said, like it hardly needed explaining, but thankfully she went on. “You don’t love her.”

The Doctor stilled. His mouth opened once but no sound was forthcoming. Everyone else was looking between them with avid interest like they were a gripping game of cricket or perhaps one of those daytime soaps Donna had told him about when they’d met that fellow in the 43rd century who had apparently been a dead ringer, she’d sworn, for some actor whose name he’d forgotten on _EastEnders_ —and there he was babbling away and distracting himself from answering what Rose had left unasked. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Donna; her gaze was lowered and her mouth had twisted into that little smile she’d worn after the Library where she hadn’t been alright at all.

But the TARDIS lurched and he was required to throw his full focus behind keeping her under control for the rest of the flight.

“Right then, first stop. Rose, Jackie, Mickey, and that one there,” he pointed to his clone, “with me. Rest of you, just sit tight for a minute.” He let the companions he’d specified out before him then walked outside onto a beach he’d never seen before.

But apparently Jackie had. “Oh, fat lot of good this is. Back of beyond. Bloody Norway? I'm going to have to phone your father,” she called over her shoulder to Rose, who had stopped just a few feet out of the TARDIS. Then she turned to explain to the Duplicate, “He's on the nursery run. I was pregnant, do you remember? Had a baby boy.”  
“Oh, brilliant. What did you call him?”   
“Doctor.”   
Proving he really had been born today so to speak, his clone gullibly asked, “Really?   
“No, you plum,” Jackie teased. “He's called Tony.”   
“Hold on,” said Rose, “this is the parallel universe, right?”   
“You're back home.” She turned uncomprehending eyes on him and so he elaborated. “The walls between worlds will be closing off again, now that Davros’ plan was stopped.”

She shook her head. “No, but I spent all that time trying to find you. I’m not going back now.”

The Doctor suppressed a grimace. He’d hoped, really hoped, that in the intervening years Rose had realized much like he had that things had ended the way they should’ve. “You have a life here, a family. All of you do.”

“Er, about that, Boss,” Mickey piped up. He was standing even closer to the TARDIS than Rose had been, practically right on the threshold like he was ready to jump back in at a moment’s notice. “My gran passed away.”

“Oh, Mickey, I’m so sorry.”

He shook his head. “It was nice and peaceful. She spent her last years living in a mansion. There's nothing here for me now. Certainly not—well, anyway.” Though he’d cut himself off, there was no mistaking the way his eyes had flitted just briefly in Rose’s direction. “So I was thinking, I’d get off back on the other side if that’s alright.”

“What will you do?” He had to ask. After all, Mickey had been considered missing or dead back on their side for years.  
But the former mechanic didn’t seem bothered by that thought. Instead he grinned. “Anything. Brand new life. Just you watch.”

Jackie had been watching him sadly but forced a brave smile to her face. “Oh, go on then.”

The Doctor gave a nod of his own and the other man’s grin widened all the more.

“ _He_ gets to stay?” Rose asked incredulously, and looking at her he could see the indignation clear on her face. “What about me?”

Behind him, he thought he heard the sounds of Mickey scrambling back inside the police box doors. Wise man.

“Well you, you do have a family, Rose,” he pointed out the obvious in a tone he hoped sounded like he wasn’t pointing out the obvious. “I nearly caused them to lose you once, and I won’t let that happen again.”

“But I want to be with you,” she protested. “I need to be with you, otherwise you’ll go off and—”

“Go off and what?”

She looked very unwilling to continue under his steady gaze. “Nothing. It’s just—you don’t have to do this,” she said in a rush. “I know you feel like you do, but it’s like Dalek Caan said, right? One of us is going to die, so saving Donna goes against the prophecy—”

_What_? “To hell with Caan’s prophecy! What’s following it done except to commit genocide?” His Duplicate frowned but otherwise made no sound of protest. Rose had flinched at his outburst and he took a moment to reign his temper back in. “Because of my inattention, the Daleks were wiped out. That is my burden to bear, Rose, not a prophecy’s. But there’ll be no more of that today. If I can save Donna, then I will.”

“So you’ll go off and marry her when you won’t even say you love me?” She choked out, clearly trying to stave off tears. Oh. “I stood here on this beach on the worst day of my life and you said my name, but the connection broke, remember? How was that sentence gonna end? Finish it now.”

“I can’t.”

“Why not?” She demanded.

He said nothing.

Rose sucked in a sharp breath and half-turned from him, her arms coming up to cross over her chest in something of a hug. The Doctor looked to Jackie, trying to convey his apologies through that contact alone. She gave a short nod, then stepped up to Rose, wrapping the girl up in a true embrace.

“No more looking back, Rose. You need to start moving forward,” he urged. “Rest of your life ahead of you still. And our time is over—” she made a miserable sound that he did his best not to let get to him “—but it isn’t the end of your story. Just the start of a new chapter. And with that, maybe, a new me.”

She looked to him with bewildered, teary eyes, and he nodded to his clone who until now had been standing and watching silently.

“I’ll be staying,” the Duplicate clarified helpfully. “The TARDIS really isn’t big enough for two of me. Got to have some adventures of my own. I could go on them with you, if you want.”

“Let’s get ourselves back home before you start talking about adventuring again,” Jackie warned.

“Yeah, home,” Rose echoed, far more subdued. She cast one last longing look towards the TARDIS, then her gaze fell on him. “Guess we’ll both be adventuring in domesticity.”

A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. “Quite right, too.”

“You can’t stand domestic,” she reminded.

“We’ll see.” The Doctor placed his hands in the pockets of his trench coat and made to leave Bad Wolf Bay.

“Word of advice, Doctor?” His Duplicate called to him. He sighed, then turned back around and approached. “It’s not that Donna doesn’t want to marry you,” his clone said in far more of an undertone.

He raised a single eyebrow. “Very insightful.”

The other him ignored that. “She just thinks she ought not to,” is what he said instead.

“Oh yeah? What makes you say that?”

His Duplicate tapped at his temple with a finger. “Not just your thoughts and memories I’ve got up here, Sunshine.”

“Boss, didn’t you say the walls between worlds would be closing any minute now?” Mickey called. Someone was tetchy about getting back before that happened.

“Pretty sure your bride-to-be’s gonna take off without you if you don’t get a move on, Doc,” Jack added.

“Not his bride!” Snarled Donna from inside the TARDIS.

“Best get that sorted out,” the Duplicate muttered. “Good luck.”

“And to you,” he murmured back. Standing by her mother, Rose was shaking her head in clear condemnation of what she saw as the biggest mistake of his life.

The Doctor turned and left Rose Tyler standing on a beach for the second time in her life. He didn’t look back, but he did pause outside the TARDIS doors for a single moment to square his shoulders and gather his strength. He was going to need it.

\---

Donna had her hands braced against the TARDIS console, staring down at knobs and levers she’d only had a vague familiarity with a day ago thanks to Spaceman’s lessons. Now she knew what each and every one of them did. Like how she knew exactly where they were and what the Doctor was doing and that it was all her fault.

Not if the Martian had anything to say about it, apparently, and the very thought set her cheeks aflame. She found herself wishing she would just get on with it and die already. At least there’d be dignity in it! This now, it was mortifying.

Of course she should’ve expected it. This was the Doctor and when he was at his best he never gave up on saving anyone if there was still somehow a way.

Truthfully she’d been preparing for the immediate solution that popped up in her newly Time Lord-ified brain: a mind wipe of anything connected to the Doctor and his memories, anything about her best friend and the times they’d had. She’d been all set to fight him on that tooth and nail once he’d pulled her aside.

But then the bloody prawn had to go and throw all her planning out the window and leave her just as unprepared and baffled as usual. _Marriage_. The thing that Donna kept trying and trying for but never quite seemed to manage. Wasn’t the right man, wasn’t the right reality, something always got in the way.

It didn’t really matter so long as she was traveling, seeing the universe with her best friend. But now he was proposing to give her both—without actually proposing, come to think of it—and Donna felt wretched. It was perhaps the perfect solution—but she couldn’t do this to him. The best man she’d ever known apart from her dad and Gramps, but her _friend_. He’d been clear on that at the start and Donna had been more than happy to comply, then told herself she simply had to continue to comply as time went on and she realized more and more that this, the traveling and him, were what she’d been missing in her life for so long.

“Donna,” Martha, ever concerned and ready to do whatever she could to help, stepped up to her side. “Are you feeling okay?”

“I’m alright,” she sighed. “For now.”

Martha nodded, then drew in a breath like she was preparing to say something she knew Donna didn’t want to hear. “I think once the Doctor gets back we ought to do this as soon as possible. It can’t be good for you to be holding onto his memories on your own any longer than necessary. And I know it’s not what you want—”

“It’s not what he wants,” she said with a shake of her head. “He’s just doing it because he thinks he has to. He shouldn’t have to. It’s not right.”

Before the other woman could say anything else, the doors opened again, only it wasn’t who they were expecting who reentered.

“Mickey?” It was Sarah Jane who asked. “What’s going on?”

“We’re in the parallel world. The Boss is dumping his clone with Rose and Jackie before the walls between here and our world close up for good, and I was not hanging around for that this time.”

“He’s leaving Rose behind?” Martha asked incredulously. A day ago, Donna might have felt the same.

But when she’d told the Doctor the long-lost blonde girl was coming back, she’d been unable to ignore the worry and outright fear in his eyes. Of course that was because Rose’s return clearly meant something bad was happening to the universe but she would have thought he’d at least be a little happy about the side benefit of her return.

Now she had his memories and when she looked at Rose through that lens there was certainly fondness, a great deal of it— _Rose was sprawled on the apple grass of New New Earth laughing and smiling with her tongue poking out through her teeth_ —along with an overwhelming guilt— _Rose was falling, nothing between her and the terrible, yawning mouth of the Void, and there was nothing to stop it, to save her, his fault, all his fault_ —but none of that…spark. If it had ever been there, it wasn’t now.

Donna had felt this before in her own past with men who she’d thought once upon a time might be The One—with the exception of Lance, of course—and it struck her very suddenly that the Doctor wasn’t forcing himself to let go of Rose for her sake. He’d already moved on.

She felt lightheaded with relief—or was that the metacrisis?—knowing she wasn’t getting in the way of anything. The Doctor wasn’t looking for a relationship, just as he’d said when she’d found him again.

But he was about to be in one, of sorts. A marriage of convenience. Donna felt like a heel all over again. He didn’t deserve this, wonderful _stupid_ man that he was.

His voice raised to a furious pitch for a moment out there, so that they could all hear him if not what he was saying. Jack made a start for the door but Mickey shook his head.

“I wouldn’t if I were you, mate.”

“I’m sure it’ll all be fine,” Sarah Jane attempted to rally them. She glanced Donna’s way. “The Doctor said we needed to move quickly. Probably just wrapping things up.”

Everyone fell silent, fidgeting and occasionally looking to each other and then away. Donna trailed a hand along the console for lack of anything better to do.

It felt like ages longer passed as they all waited, but Donna was aware it was actually only four and a half minutes and thirty-two seconds. Thirty-three, thirty-four, thirty-five—she winced and brought a hand up to rub at her temple.

Martha looked at her sharply, and Donna gave her a wan smile. “If he drags it out for much longer I might just up and die on him. That’s one way to break off the engagement.”

The other woman didn’t laugh. “He wouldn’t.”

“He should,” she insisted again. “It’s not right.”

“Alright,” Mickey muttered, then seemed to make up his mind and poked his head back through the door. “Boss, didn’t you say the walls between worlds would be closing any minute now?”

Jack joined in. “Pretty sure your bride-to-be’s gonna take off without you if you don’t get a move on, Doc.”

“Not his bride!” She stated fiercely. The others all looked at her with varying degrees of amusement and dismay. They thought she was being unreasonable. Ha! Didn’t they get unreasonable would be letting him go through with this?

“Well, Donna’s always been something of a runaway bride,” came the Doctor’s voice as he raced up the ramp to come to a stop in front of her. “Ever since the day you popped off from your wedding into my TARDIS.”

Donna forced herself to show no outward signs of amusement at the recollection and decided not to even look at him. She busied herself flipping switches, pressing buttons, and typing to send them back home to their universe. Probably her last chance to fly the Old Girl. She would drop everyone else off then take the ship to Chiswick so she could say goodbye to her family. She had to remove one hand to take a swipe at her eyes at the thought.

The Doctor heaved a heavy sigh, then reached out to take both her hands. “Donna, let me,” he murmured softly, completing the job of bringing them to their own universe. “It’s going to be alright.”

“It is not alright! You’re trying to _marry_ me, you daft Martian.”

“So?”

“ _So_ ,” she dragged it out. Honestly, was he that thick? “I’m not going to be one of those women that traps you into marriage!”

“You ask me, if anybody’s trying to trap someone into marriage here it’s the Boss,” remarked Mickey from the sidelines.

“Thank you!” The Doctor snapped with a pointed glare. Then he turned back to her with a gentler tone. “Donna, you wouldn’t be trapping me. I want to do this! My idea, remember?”

“To save me from my mind burning up,” she argued again.

“To save you, yes!”

“Well don’t!”

“ _Don’t_?” He echoed, incredulous. He looked about at the others seemingly for help.

“Donna,” Martha tried, “think about what you’re saying.”

“I am,” she stated flatly.

“It’s just you don’t seem all that open to discussing it,” Sarah Jane pointed out.

“Nothing to discuss.”

“You sure? When an opportunity that nice knocks, might be worth it to hear it out,” Jack recommended with a grin.

“Course you’d think that,” she snorted.

“Well if it were the Boss or dying even I’d at least consider it,” said Mickey.

“Really?” asked Jack with some surprise. “I did not see that coming, Mickey Mouse.”

“Look it’s just to create some bond thing to save her,” the other man elaborated with a roll of his eyes. “Not like he’s asking her to shack up with him.”

But Martha countered, “Not everyone is that cavalier about marriage.” She was looking at Donna with clear sympathy now. “You said it’s not right. He’s not right. But if it’s the only way, Donna—”

“Look it’s not as if I have a death wish,” she interrupted. “But if me living means him having to—it’s just not right. Not that way.” She couldn’t bear it, didn’t they see that?

“You think I don’t want to marry you,” the Doctor spoke. She opened her mouth again, but he kept on talking, gazing at her so intently she thought he was looking right through to the heart of her. Like his clone had when he’d realized just how useless and ordinary she really felt. “You think I’ll be miserable once it happens. You think this whole situation is your fault and that I’d be better off letting you die.” He took two steps to place himself right in her personal space again, so that she had to tilt her head back to meet his eyes. “You couldn’t be more wrong.”

“Yeah, nice try, Time Boy. I believe you,” she snarked back.

“You don’t have to believe me. You just have to think, Donna.” His expression turned more guarded for a moment before he continued, softly, “You have all my memories, my thoughts. If this isn’t something I am willing and wanting to do…then you’ll know.”

Her eyes widened. He was giving her permission to root around in his brain to find out just what he felt about her. And he looked nervous about it. What could that mean?

Barely had she thought that before a barrage of images seemed to rise to the forefront of her mind, all of them familiar to her in some way. Only the perspective had shifted.

_“We’ll be late for cocktails,” he was calling into the TARDIS, parked in the 1920s. He was itching to get to that party and to show her a good time; they could use the break. The door opened and his breath caught; Donna emerged in a dress he’d never seen before, her hair done up, and his respiratory bypass nearly kicked in as she struck a pose against the doorframe. She teasingly asked him how she looked but his reply was nothing but genuine. Lovely, she was the loveliest thing he’d ever seen—_

_He never talked about his family, not ever, and yet somehow once he’d started it didn’t seem as hard to with Donna. She understood, she always understood him so brilliantly, everything he did and didn’t say. And when she said that she and Jenny could help to ease that pain, despite all his best efforts he wanted so badly to believe her—_

_He put one foot in front of the other, slow and halting in a body that was just starting to feel his own again after the creature had been forced out. He barely noticed his surroundings, eyes fixed on his goal: Donna, moving quickly across the floor towards him. Her hug was warm and soft, her perfume sweet, and she was the first thing since he’d been taken over by the creature that felt real. He pulled her closer, tighter to him and only now in her embrace did he begin to feel safe—_

_Donna was saying she was leaving for home and everything else around them on that UNIT base stopped existing as his vision tunneled in on her, her ginger hair and mesmerizing eyes, cataloging everything in this moment of goodbye that had come all too soon. His hearts clenched at the thought and he was seized with the terrifying realization he had no idea how he’d get on without her and he never wanted to. Wouldn’t have to, either, as he processed what she’d really meant, the shame washing over him at his overreaction dwarfed by a wave of overwhelming relief—_

_His mouth was the most unappealing miasma of ginger beer and anchovies, but Donna was hauling him to her and— **oh**. Her lips were warm, soft, and they slotted against his in a way that sent him staggering weak at the knees. She kissed him like her life depended on it—or his, rather—and he was lost in the passionate storm for a single blissful moment before he pushed her away with a pang of longing and regret to expel the toxins—_

_He watched her stroll through the market on Shan Shen, chatting and bartering with the salespeople at their stalls like a natural. In her element, she was absolutely, stunningly radiant; how she didn’t see it he’d never know and he could never tell her. But just seeing it himself, seeing her, was enough to fill his hearts with joy and awe and_ _—_

“Donna.” She came back to herself with his hands lightly touching either side of her face and his brown eyes boring into hers with an expression she’d classified until this very moment as enigmatic. But she knew now, she knew what it was. Something shifted in his look as she refocused, creeping into his eyes and furrowing into his brow. “Do you see now?”

“We said just mates,” she repeated again, though her voice had gone all soft and wavering and it was hard to get the words out around the lump that’d risen in her throat.

“I know,” he sighed. “And I’m so—”

“Don’t apologize,” she cut him off, and that vulnerable look only increased. Donna felt herself smile. “If you’re marrying me you’ll not be taking it back, not ever.”

“Am I marrying you now?” Cheek.

“I think you’d better, Spaceman.” She pushed herself up onto her tiptoes, clenching his shirt collar in her hands in order to bring his mouth down to hers in a kiss that did not taste like he’d just raided the pantry, thank God. And _God_ was he a good kisser! To think she could’ve been finding that out ages ago if she hadn’t been so determined to stick to the ‘just mates’ rule. As if!

Sarah Jane coughing politely into her hand got their attention, and if it hadn’t then Jack’s wolf-whistle would’ve. “Shouldn’t we get everything ready? You said there was a ceremony of some sort, Doctor.”

“Erm, yeah,” he squeaked, then cleared his throat in order to get his voice back to normal. Donna might’ve laughed if she weren’t busy trying to hide behind his skinny frame. “It’s not complicated, really, and due to a very quickly approaching deadline we’ll just keep to the basics so—oh.”

“What’s ‘oh’?” Asked Martha.

But then Donna’s mind had jumped to it, too. “You’re kidding,” she said.

“I’m really not.”

“Well,” she threw her hands up into the air, “might as well give it up as a bad job now! No way my mum will ever—she doesn’t even know about the aliens and traveling!”

“Well she’s got to have some idea by now,” he reasoned. “And we really should tell them, Donna, don’t you think they’ll want to know you’re getting married?”

“They had the reception _without me_ ,” she reminded through gritted teeth.

He grimaced at the memory. “Well, not Wilf at least. Who knows, maybe he’ll be the only one in!”

“Donna’s folks have to give her away?” Jack guessed.

The Doctor was punching in a new set of coordinates. “Yes, and it’ll probably take some explaining. I’ll just drop you lot in the center of London, think you can make your way—”

“Woah, what?” The immortal man shook his head. “I’m not missing your wedding.”

“Nor me,” Martha added quickly.

“Don’t Time Lord weddings need witnesses or something?” Mickey asked.

“It would be nice to be there, show our support,” Sarah Jane commented.

The Doctor was gaping at them, but Donna winced again in pain. “Well come on then, Martian, I’m running out of time! Funny that, running out of time in a time machine, should be impossible but it’s just a bit unlikely- likely- likely- likely—”

“Martha,” the Doctor requested with a worried edge to his voice across the console, and the other woman guided her to sit in the jump seat and take deep breaths. They landed with a sudden jarring thud and then the Doctor was there pulling her up by her hands and racing with her out the door—

Into her mum’s sitting room.

“Wilf! Sylvia! Hello!”

“Donna! How- when- what is that box? How did he get it in here?” Her mother had leapt up from one of the chairs and was fast bearing down on the pair of them.

“That’s it then, the blue box. An alien spaceship in our home, ha!” Her Gramps looked at the TARDIS like it was his Christmas present. “Just got done saving everyone, have you, Doctor? You and our brilliant girl?”

“Very nearly, and that’s why we need to talk—”

“Who are all these people?” Her mum snapped, for the others were all exiting the TARDIS with Jack at the front. “How’d they fit in there?”

“Different dimension, ma’am, sorry about the intrusion,” the immortal flashed a smile.

“Yes, hello,” Sarah Jane greeted. “We just thought we’d come along, show our support—”

“Support for what?”

“Alright, everyone, shut it!” Donna finally bellowed. Bloody hell if her head wasn’t already hurting this would’ve done it! “Mum, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about the aliens and the travelling. I can explain in a minute, I just need you to do something for me.”

Her mother, predictably, placed her hands on her hips stubbornly. “And just what is that, lady?”

“Well, it’s not too difficult,” answered the Doctor while Donna rolled her eyes. “Only takes a moment of your time, really. If you could just consent and gladly give—oh, and if we could perhaps borrow a strip of cloth before that—”

“Doctor,” said Donna.

“—anything will do, though preferably something thinner—”

“Doctor.”

“—anywhere from a foot to a meter long is fine—”

“ _Doctor_.”

“Yes, Donna?” He finally turned round to look at her. She merely eyed his neck pointedly. “Oh! Right! Brilliant, you are!” He positively beamed at her and then started to undo the tie around his neck.

“Combining the male stripper with the wedding,” Jack commented. “Nice, I like it.”

“ _Jack_!” said the Doctor and Martha.

“ _Wedding_!” shrieked her mother. “What’s he talking about, Donna? Donna!”

She rubbed at her temples. “Look, there’s this thing in my head and it’s gonna make it explode unless the Doctor and I create this mental bond that we can only do if we get married, so if you could just do what he’s says that’d be lovely!”

“You’re getting married to _him_?”

“No, I’m getting married to Sarah Jane—were you listening to what I just said?” She demanded.

“Married to the Doctor, well there you go,” remarked her Gramps, who seemed absolutely delighted of course. “You know she tried to tell me it wasn’t like that back when she was looking for you, Doctor? Said she was waiting for a man, but not in that way. Ha!”

“Yeah, yeah,” she grumbled, her cheeks flushing a bright pink as the Doctor turned twinkling eyes on her.

“So you’ve been living in sin with him for months and just now decided to let us know? You haven’t even got a priest!”

“We don’t need one. This is a Gallifreyan wedding, and all we need is two people trying to get married, your permission, and this.” He passed one end of his tie over to her, and Donna started wrapping it around her hand as he did likewise.

“What, no rings or nothing?” Asked Mickey. “Time Lord weddings must’ve been pretty short.”

“This is the short version of the ceremony since we’re on a bit of a clock,” explained the Doctor “Speaking of, Sylvia, if you could just say ‘I consent and gladly give’ please?”

“I most certainly will—”

“I do,” said Gramps, and Donna would’ve hugged him if she weren’t currently tethered to her alien groom. “I consent and gladly give.”

“Dad!” Cried her mum in dismay.

“Sylvia, love, I know you’ve just found out about all this, but he really is the best thing for Donna. And she is for him. If it’s the only way to save our girl, don’t you think you ought to let them sort the rest of it out?”

“Well I—”

“Sylvia, I wouldn’t be marrying your daughter right now if her life didn’t depend on it,” said the Doctor, and Donna’s gaze dropped to the floor. Well, there was the truth at last. “I’d court her properly, because you’re right, this isn’t the sort of thing you enter into lightly. My people didn’t think so either; in fact, the mental bond we’ll be making couldn’t be used if the feelings between Donna and I weren’t absolutely genuine, which they are, because I happen to hold her in the highest possible esteem. If you’d like, consider this the engagement and I would be more than happy to submit to whatever Earth customs you please for however long you or Donna pleases. You can show me round to your friends as Donna’s fiancé, you can invite me to Christmas dinner, you can call up a priest and I’ll get married in a church—if you would just say ‘I consent and gladly give’ and _save your daughter’s life_.”

There was dead silence in the wake of his impassioned speech, and was only broken when Donna exhaled shakily and used her free hand to wipe at eyes brimming with tears. She couldn’t help it; no one else had ever talked about her that way before. Except him, of course, he always did.

Her mother looked between the two of them, torn. “I don’t want you doing something you’ll regret later,” she finally pleaded.

“I know. I won’t,” said Donna simply.

“You’re not even wearing a dress,” her mother pointed out.

“I just saved the universe in these clothes. Think they’ll do just as well.” She winced again. The pain was starting to become unbearable. “Mum, please.”

“Oh- well—alright, I consent and gladly give,” her mother finally relented sounding anything but glad.

“Brilliant,” said the Doctor in a clipped tone. His features softened as he turned and stepped closer to her. “I suppose one part of Caan’s prophecy is still coming true. I’m about to reveal my soul to you, Donna Noble,” he mused.

“Yeah, Spaceman, I’ll appreciate it when it stops feeling like my head’s on fire,” she replied.

He nodded. “I’m going to whisper something in your ear, something you can’t ever tell another person no matter what. Ready?” He didn’t wait for an answer, instead leaning in and to the side. Then Donna was feeling the brush of his lips on the shell of her ear and the whisper…whisper didn’t even begin to describe it; it was a quiet stirring, the start of an ancient, pitchless song, and it filled her head washing over it like cool air and soothing the burn. And suddenly her mind didn’t feel full—it felt _more_ , the knowledge at her disposal wasn’t crammed in, but simply floated along back and forth from her…to him.

He was leaning back away from her now, eyes crinkling with his gentle smile. “Hello.” Affection, relief, and just a hint of shyness danced across her synapses, and she couldn’t control the surprise that echoed back along to him. His expression morphed into a wider grin. “Feeling better?”

“Just about,” she answered.

“So, that’s it?” Martha asked tentatively, and she nearly jumped in surprise. “Sorry- just, Donna’s going to be okay? No burning?”

“Nope.” The Doctor happily told them all.

“Well that’s wonderful! Congratulations,” said Sarah Jane with a warm smile.

“So what’d the Boss tell you?” Mickey wanted to know.

“Sorry, did you miss the bit about never telling anyone ever?” She asked rhetorically. When most everyone still looked expectant she gave an exasperated sigh. “His name.”

“Woah,” Jack remarked with wide eyes, clearly getting that significance.

“Do you mean to tell me you didn’t even know his _name_ before you decided to get _married_?” Her mother looked like she was about ready to retract that whole consent-and-gladly-give declaration.

“It’s not like that,” she did her best to head off the tirade before it could begin. “It’s a weird, alien thing. His name’s the Doctor to anybody else but he’s got another that he’s not supposed to tell anybody.”

“Except his wife, apparently,” guessed Jack with a grin.

“Got that right,” she nodded with a smirk of her own, then looked back the alien’s way. “Oi, new husband, you’ve still got one of those Earth customs to fulfill.”

“Do I?” The Doctor asked in clear puzzlement. Donna arched an imperious brow. “Oh, right!” With that he swooped in for another one of those breath-stealing kisses she didn’t know where he’d learned. Donna clenched her end of the tie tight in one hand and used the other to grip the back of his head to urge him on.

Dimly she registered some scattered applause and cheers from the others, as well as an “Oh, honestly,” from her mother. By the time she finally pulled away—not like she had a handy respiratory bypass, thanks!—the older woman was retreating further into the house with a shake of the head, apparently giving them all up as a bad job.

Donna’s eyes instead searched for her Gramps. He was watching with a smile on his face and tears starting to leak from the corners of his eyes. “Oh Gramps!” Quickly she unwound the tie and hurried to throw her arms about him.

He hugged back “It’s alright, sweetheart. This old man’s just happy you’ve found your man, and you’ll look after him and see those stars.” She nodded into his shoulder. “Now what was all that about saving the universe, eh?”

“Oh, it’s quite the story, Wilf,” the Doctor enthused from somewhere by her elbow. “There are worlds out there, safe in the sky because of her. People living in the light, and singing songs of Donna Noble, a thousand million light years away!”

“Hey, that’s my girl!” Her Gramps held her back at arm’s length to beam at her with pride. “Saving us all.”

“The most important woman in the universe,” the Doctor agreed.

“That’s enough, you,” she chided.

“What, am I not allowed to brag about my wife?” She fixed him with a look, but he kept on grinning unabashed; he could tell through their shared mental connection she was secretly pleased.

She was going to have to watch that, though she was already starting to get the hang of just what she was sending or receiving. It seemed almost instinctual. The Doctor was better, of course, though she kept getting the occasional flash of thought or emotion randomly. _Bit rusty at this_ rippled across her consciousness, and she gave the slightest nod.

“Looks like she’s got you well in hand then, Mister,” Martha commented as she came up to the pair of them. She gave the Doctor and then her a hug. “Couldn’t be happier for you both. Not to mention I can count on you to get him to my wedding, then. He’ll have no excuse now,” the other woman stated with a grin.

“You’ve got it,” she promised.

She was on the receiving end of a whole round of hugs after that and heard the words “congratulations” more times than graduation. Not a very typical wedding at all, but at least it had the important bits!

They were interrupted by the sound of a mobile. “Sorry everyone.” Jack fished it out with a grin. “Gwen!”

“Jack, where the bloody hell are you?” The Welsh woman’s voice could be heard. He moved out into the front hall and the rest of their conversation was lost.

“Oh dear, just what time is it?” Sarah Jane asked.

“Dunno, but it’s dark. And pouring out there,” Mickey informed them as he peered out the window.

“Atmospheric disturbance,” said Donna and the Doctor together. They met eyes and promptly burst out laughing.

“Right, well, think most of us need to be getting home,” Martha stated. “Lucky thing you parked us inside.”

“So it is. Jack, c’mon!” The Doctor called as he strode to the TARDIS. “Tell your team you’ll be there in a minute!”

“We’ll probably be off, too.” Donna’s eyes darted in the direction her mother had gone, and her Gramps noticed.

“Never you mind about that. Best to give her some time to process it all. I’m sure next you’re in she’ll want to have the girls round to introduce your husband—or, ah, fiancé, I suppose.”

“Yeah,” she agreed with a wan smile. “Suppose you’re right. Okay then, I’ll see you soon.”

“Come back around when you’re ready. And you look after him,” he instructed.

“I will.” She kissed his cheek, then met the Doctor at the police box doors. He nodded to her Gramps, who saluted back. Then her Spaceman placed his hand in hers and reentered the ship together.

They made quick work of returning the others to their respective homes with promises to stop by that were vague enough not to put too much pressure on the alien, commitment-phobe that he was. And yet here she was married to him. Married to her best friend in the whole wide universe.

The Doctor closed the doors on Jack and Mickey, who they were leaving in the hands of the Torchwood team to start his new life, and whirled back around on the ramp to face her. “So! Donna Noble’s Tour of the Universe on hold, Honeymoon Tour of the Universe just getting started.”

“Yeah,” she said.

Perhaps she’d sounded or looked a bit dazed, or maybe he could just feel it through the bond, for the Doctor frowned. “Everything okay?”

“Course,” she hastened to reassure. “Just—did you mean what you said to my mum? About, you know, ‘courting’ or whatever?”

“Yes. This was all a bit rushed and I’d never—I wouldn’t presume to force you into some kind of relationship you weren’t ready for, Donna.”

“Right. So if I decided I didn’t want any of the relationship bits and pretended we weren’t married you’d be fine with it?”

She watched as he made his way up to the controls, flipping a couple switches that didn’t affect anything while they were parked and not meeting her gaze. “Yeah, perfectly fine.”

The Doctor seemed to come to the realization the same time as Donna that with the bond in place he was an even worse liar to her.

She reached out and covered one of his hands with hers, stilling the movement. “I do want it, though.” He looked up with a tremulous smile that she mirrored before letting him go and moving to actually send them into the Vortex. “Not everything, not right away. How about we just take it as it goes? Travel like normal, with the relationship bits in between.”

“That is an absolutely brilliant idea,” he praised. She allowed herself a small smile from behind the Time Rotor. “So, next stop? We could always—”

“I don’t want to be running for my life on our first date,” she warned before he could really get going.

“Oh sorry, did you have somewhere in mind?” He replied with a sarcastic edge. Donna let it slide this time.

“Think I remember something in your head about the planet Felspoon,” she began, trailing her fingers over the controls before meeting him around the other side. “Mountains that sway in the breeze. Might be a nice place to start.”

He grinned widely, then dropped a kiss to the corner of her mouth. “Felspoon it is. _Allons-y_!”

They managed to find the one alien invasion in the history of the entire planet of Felspoon and ended up running for their lives anyway. It was the best first date Donna had ever had.

\---

“Stop fidgeting.”

“I’m not,” he insisted, then amended under a hard stare. “Not much.”

“I don’t even know how you still have the energy to fidget, Doc,” remarked an uncharacteristically subdued Jack at his side. “That was one hell of a bachelor party.”

“As I recall, that ‘hell of a bachelor party’ was your idea,” he retorted. “As was you being my best man in the first place.”

“Yeah,” admitted Jack with a sleepy smile. He really should’ve stuck with his first choice of Sarah Jane.

“You’re fidgeting again,” came the observation from the step above him.

“Well I can’t exactly help it, Alistair, it just so happens today is my wedding day,” the Doctor snapped.

“Aren’t you technically already married?”

“Brigadier Sir Alistair Gordon Lethbridge-Stewart, today is not the day to bring facts into this,” he threatened. Silence followed that pronouncement for a short time.

“Your fidgeting is making me nervous,” the man finally commented.

“ _You’re_ nervous! What’ve you got to be nervous for? You’re just following a script!”

“So are you,” Jack unhelpfully pointed out.

“Facts, Jack!”

“Normally you’re only this high-strung when we’re about to be invaded,” the older-looking gentleman explained.

“Well we’re not. Well, probably not. _Well_ it’s always a possibility but I’m nearly certain Donna and I picked a day with absolutely no invasions of Earth. At least not in this hemisphere. If we get invaded it’s probably this tux, it is patently unlucky.” He tugged at the cuffs with distaste. “Anyway, if my fidgeting is making you nervous, go make some calls or something. Don’t think I don’t know you’ve got a transceiver on under that robe.”

“Already made them. Why do you think half your side of the aisle is made up of UNIT soldiers?”

The Doctor resisted the urge to scowl out at the pews. After a number of months—well, closer to a year if he counted that one time loop they’d gotten stuck in on Ladora IV—the Doctor and Donna had decided they quite liked married life and ought to make it official back on Earth with her friends and family. He’d vetoed inviting Nerys, though.

And if he’d known just how much _planning_ had to go into these things, he might have put the whole ordeal off for another decade or so. Sylvia had taken care of most of it, fortunately, and the woman had seemed to be enjoying it quite a lot for barely tolerating him. Of course, it had been Sarah who had come through with the arrangements for how he, a non-native of Earth, would be officially documented as Donna’s husband with the help of UNIT. If pressed, he had to admit he was a little touched the Brig had volunteered his services to officiate—not that the old solider needed to know that.

Out of the corner of his eye he could see the Motts and Nobles and other relations or acquaintances sneaking the odd glance or two over at his more sparsely filled, eclectic looking half of the church. UNIT personnel he wasn’t even going to bother pretending to know at the reception were seated further in the back while the front few aisles were made up of a collection of friends, some of whom he’d never thought he’d meet up with again; Sarah had brought K-9, her son, and a couple of his friends; Liz Shaw had taken a rocket all the way back from Moonbase; Ian and Barbara looking young as ever; there was Ace—or should he say Dorothy McShane?—and Jo had brought a whole crew of children and grandchildren. Word spread fast among his former companions, apparently. He had a feeling half of them had shown up just to see if this was real.

He tensed as the Brigadier suddenly began to welcome the people. What, they were starting already? The other man looked skyward for a moment, then continued with some prayer before refocusing his gaze to the doors in the back and that seemed as good an idea as any. The rest of the wedding party proceeded to enter with the hymn, a number of them from Donna’s family or friends whom he’d only met just days ago. Martha was looking brilliant on Mickey’s arm, though, and he felt less bad about not noticing her lack of engagement ring at the rehearsal dinner until Donna had mentally guided him to that observation. Clearly Tom was daft.

Then finally, _finally_ , there was Donna on Wilf’s arm. Annnd there was the respiratory bypass again. She’d always looked lovely in a wedding dress, he’d known that from the day they met. But his hearts were beating in double-time to know that _this_ dress, _this_ wedding, was theirs. Something had to be meddling with time because he seemed to watch them for an age but then suddenly Donna was right there by his side, Wilfred Mott placing her hand in his before giving his customary salute. The Doctor swallowed down the lump in his throat and returned it with a shaky nod.

Donna’s amusement was plain to his senses before he even turned to see her newly unveiled smirk. He did his best to rally quickly. “Look at that, you made it all the way down the aisle this time.”

“Oi, no cheek at my wedding,” she chided softly.

“It’s our wedding, if I’m not mistaken.”

“Whenever you’re ready,” remarked the Brig dryly. They shared a grin and then faced him.

It really was all following a script. After all, this was only for show and the benefit of having a public record. Still, it hardly explained the swooping feeling he got in his stomach as he slid the ring on her finger, nor the earnestness with which he spoke the vows. Donna seemed to be in a similar frame of mind, at least, though he felt her nearly give a laugh as he couldn’t help some slight impatience as the service dragged on. How many prayers did Alistair have to say before they were properly married? Earth weddings were dreadful.

Well except for the bit that came next. Everyone said the last “Amen” and at last he was able to take Donna in his arms and kiss her as husband and wife. Which he’d technically been doing for quite a while now, but details.

Jack let loose a whistle as everyone else clapped and they managed to disentangle and face the crowd of relatives, old friends, and strangers. Whom they were expected to hang around with for the next several hours in some crowded reception hall making small talk and dancing to this or that song played by a deejay. Right.

“Let’s get out of here,” he begged, as soon as the door of the limo had been shut behind them after an exhausting round of photos with him and Donna, him and Donna and Alistair, Donna and her family, the wedding party, him and Donna and Donna’s family and the wedding party, and him and K-9. He couldn’t do all this in one go, how did humans manage it?

Donna turned startled eyes on him. “What, right now? We’ve still got the reception—”

“We’ll get back to it. Right now I want to go see the universe with my wife.” He placed a kiss to her knuckles, looking up at her with big eyes. “My beautiful, gorgeous, brilliant wife who would much rather dance under the Star Dome of Kattala Lo than a refurbished UNIT bunker.”

Donna raised a single delicate brow. “Star Dome?”

“Star Dome,” the Doctor confirmed.

He could feel the moment her resolve snapped. “Oi!” Donna barked up to the driver. “Take us round the back of the church, blue box, light on the top.”

“Ma’am?”

“I said do it!”

Their driver made a sharp turn.

“I love you,” the Doctor said with a wide beam.

“Well, lucky thing I’m your wife then,” she remarked. “Love you too, Spaceman.”

He carried her over the threshold and away they were, the Doctor and Donna in a wedding dress. Funny how the universe had a way of bringing those sorts of things together.


End file.
